Olde Magic
by KSilverton
Summary: Harry is introduced to Selena, an old-world fey whose presence makes the adults at Hogwarts very nervous despite her cheery disposition. This was written as an alternate 5th year for Harry and his companions to answer questions left in my mind about the origins of magic.
1. Chapter 1 - Taken!

**TAKEN!**

Although life with the Dursleys had improved drastically over the last few summers, the sight of Hogwarts castle atop the hills in the distance always filled Harry with a sense of comfort and belonging he would never know at home. Moving steadily along the tracks, the Hogwarts Express sounded its whistle alerting all passengers that they would arrive at their destination in just a few minutes. The aisles began to fill with students, old and new, pulling their packs and portmanteaus from the overhead bins as they prepared to depart. As the train cars hissed one by one to a full stop, the children burst out of the doors full of excitement and enthusiasm, elated to be reunited with their classmates once again. Returning students clustered together, regaling each other with summertime adventures and anticipating what the new year might hold for them. First-years started to form a line before Hagrid at his behest, their eyes wide with wonder having their first glimpse of the half-giant. Professor Moody exchanged muttered greetings with the conductor while Filch loaded carts with crates and cages from the train. Among all of the commotion, Luna alone noticed the shadow moving quickly towards them from the distant sky. It seemed to move along the clouds with purpose. Her eyes fixed upon it, she spoke not a word but slowly raised a pointing finger upward at the looming darkness. It approached with great speed.

The Gryffindor boys stood huddled at the walkway leading to the front gates of the castle. "Is it true, Ron?" chided Seamus, "Kate says you asked Fleur Delacour to the Yule Ball last term. Fleur Delacour! What were ya thinkin'?!" he chuckled, playfully punching at Ron who pantomimed the rejection playing along with him. Harry, throwing his head back in laughter at Seamus's dig, caught sight of Luna from the corner of his eye and followed her gaze to the unbridled expanse of darkness descending upon them. Before he could utter a sound of warning, all light was completely gone from the rail yard.

He shouted; everyone shouted, but all sound was lost to the thunderous beating of hooves rolling overhead. Only flashes of images could be seen as light peeked through here and there in places where the blackness didn't quite touch the earth. Bodies scattered; some of the younger students were raised up to safety from being trampled by the older ones, some of them were less fortunate. Bursts of red, green, and blue sparks from Moody's wand were continuously snuffed as he furiously spat out one incantation after another. Harry thought he saw Hagrid lunging for him through a cloud of dust with terror in his eyes. Several boys and girls fell to the ground clutching at their ears to escape the deafening chorus of shrieks piercing through the clamor of the darkness – which suddenly lifted and continued to pass by as quickly as it had set in. Within just a few seconds, it was but a distant shadow on the clouds once more and Harry was gone.

The horsemen moved onward with their prize in silence, the echo of their victory cries far behind them. Harry, dizzy from the sudden speed and change in elevation, wrestled as best he could with what seemed to be a wrought iron post across his chest pinning him against what felt like a slab of ice along the length of his back. The iron post tightened its hold the more he struggled. He forced his watering eyes open, his lenses barely shielding them from the assault of the rushing wind as they sped through the clouds. He was surprised to find that within the darkness that had abducted him, there was light enough to see clearly. He could see the oversized, dusky sleeve of the very large, very rigid arm of his mounted captor that held him close against his chest as they rode on. Strips of worn black cloth engulfing both rider and horse whipped wildly in the wind, smacking at Harry's face and neck. Looking beyond the waving mane of his abductor's airborne steed, he could just make out that they were sloping down and away from the cover of the clouds to where the trees below parted at a river.

The nightmares' stride touched down just above the thickest part of the mist that hovered silently over the water. They galloped along the vapor, curling it up into wisps of ethereal ribbons that climbed about their swift and powerful legs. The lead rider suddenly pulled Harry tighter to his chest and spurred his beast onward with a new sense of urgency. Their velocity pulled thick sheets of the mist to the bellies of the mounts where it continued to rise, dispersing into a fog that enveloped the riders. The horses whinnied and began to rear but were prodded on. Harry fearfully pushed back into the chest he'd been trying to pull away from as the mist began to creep up on him. It poured onto him from all directions, spreading itself across his body then coalescing into binds around his waist, wrists, and ankles. The binds solidified and tightened and Harry was effortlessly pulled away from the icy grip of the horseman whose momentum continued to propel him forward some distance before he could order the others about-face with a wave of his arm. Harry flailed about in mid-air, his body bound and cradled by the mist. Although he kicked and twisted violently, he was let down slowly and gently. When his feet touched the earth his binds unraveled and fell to the ground like strands of silk; he collapsed in much the same way, exhausted from the constant struggling. On his knees, he adjusted his glasses while trying to catch his breath and reorient his senses to stillness.

The horses touched down as the riders drew near, forming an arc around him just a few yards away. There were six of them, each one not only cloaked and hooded in black but shrouded by some sourceless shadow besides. They were so entirely indistinguishable from one another Harry couldn't be sure which one he had been riding with. They held their position in motionless silence as the fog continued to move with a clear will of its own. It swiftly drew itself away from the air around the riders, away from the surface of the water, and away from Harry. It began to billow into itself forming a cloudy circular mass, like smoke churning over and over in a crystal ball. Harry brought himself cautiously to his feet as he watched with amazement. Only a foot or two across, it grew more and more dense as the surrounding air became more and more clear until every drop, wisp, and strand of it had combined to form a perfect white sphere. It was floating just a few feet above the ground midway between the boy and the horsemen at the river's edge. A bright light from its center pulsed for an instant and it began to take on a new shape. The sphere became elongated, branching out here and there but with distinct boundaries as if pouring itself out into some invisible vessel that encased it. Its stretching limbs took on the unmistakable form of arms and legs; a head emerged, and in a few blinks of an eye, a human figure stood in place of the glowing white orb.

The Captain, who did not intend to go on without his charge, dismounted from his position closest to the water. His tattered and colorless cloak concealed every part of him but his massive size. His steps fell so heavy as he approached that Harry could feel the earth shake underneath of him where he still stood several yards away. His shrouded armor clinked and clanked while he walked only far enough forward to look straight down at the mist-person who by all appearances was a woman - though young or old it was hard to say as the cover of the trees obscured what little light the setting sun had to offer. She was equally small in stature as he was large, her pale skin wrapped loosely in white cloth from her bust to her knees, her feet and shoulders left bare. Her hair was a contrastingly dark tsunami of wavelets that cascaded over all. She craned her neck to meet the goliath's gaze, her posture suggesting neither fear nor aggression.

Soot shook loose from his hood as a low, guttural, echo of a voice spoke quite disapprovingly, "Selena".

A prolonged moment of silence followed. Harry argued to himself that it was more courage than cowardice that moved his feet forward until he was standing just behind Selena. The trappings covering her body flowed behind her, slowly swaying in the absence of wind, mingling with the tresses of her hair and brushing across the tops of his shoes and into the folds of his slacks. The crown of her head didn't quite reach his line of sight so that he too faced the Captain, nose to belly.

The rumble of his words came at her again demandingly, "What business is this of yours?"

"I could ask you the same," she said accusingly in a voice surprisingly rich for her size and with an accent Harry didn't recognize.

His chest rose with the deep inhalation of limited patience.

Selena turned slightly and looked over her shoulder at the Boy Who Lived. Though night was falling there was a subtle glow about her that illuminated her features. Capturing the reflection of the moving water off the bank, a halo of amber danced around the oversized pupils of her large round eyes. Her cheeks were high and her chin pronounced, her skin unmarred by age. She reminded Harry of some of the older statues at school. She smiled knowingly at him and turned back to answer coyly, "I have a vested interest."

Plainly irritated at her response, he pressed with weakening restraint, "You will not yield?"

She cocked her head slightly, and with some annoyance of her own answered, "No".

The sound of metal sliding on metal started the nightmares snuffing, snorting and stamping at the ground. Harry began to step away but Selena reached back for his hand pulling him close behind her. In a single snapping motion the Captain raised an iron clad palm signaling his subordinates to stay their blades. The other riders looked at one another briefly as they sheathed their weapons then all eyes turned back to their commander, or to Selena, it was hard to say.

He exhaled a biting black vapor that stung Harry's cheeks as it dissipated into the air around them. "So be it," he resounded and with only a few heavy steps he was mounted again, twisting up the reins of his sable stallion. The others began to fall into rank.

Selena looked down at her feet and pressed back into Harry. He could feel the excessive warmth of her body through his shirt. Some flowery aroma wafted up from her hair but it wasn't familiar to him. As she leaned in even closer, her hand brushed across something hard resting against his leg. She suddenly looked up and grabbing at it shouted, "Barnabas, wait!" Before he realized what was happening, she pulled the wand from his pocket and hurled it toward the Captain of the Guard. Harry watched helplessly as it sailed through the darkness turning around on itself until it disappeared into the giant mitt of its target. Barnabas nodded to Selena, reared his steed, and retreated with his men into the night sky.

Harry was left standing alone in the dark with the woman, unsure of how to react, unsure if he had been rescued at all. She turned to face him, allowing some space between them. "Well, well. Harry James Potter. Figured you to be a bit taller by now," she spoke casually but so quickly that her words spilled into each other making them hard to make out at first.

Surprised to hear his own name spoken by a stranger in the middle of the woods in the middle of the night, he asked cautiously, "You know who I am?"

"Darling, _everyone_ knows who _you_ are."

"Then you must know what's happened! He's back! Voldemort is back! Those men were probably sent to take me to him just now!"

"'Course he's back." she stated unphased, her speech so rapid she barely finished one word before beginning the next. "He wasn't ever really gone, was he?"

"Well, don't you realize what you've done?" he bravely chastised, "He'll have my wand now. They're connected somehow, mine and his. With both of them he'll become even more powerful!" he had worked himself up into quite a panic.

She looked at him quizzically and retorted calmly, "Sweetheart, even if any of that were true, no wand is worth six lives." She looked down at her feet, lifting one a few inches from the firm sand of the riverbank and holding it there a second or two before setting it back down to do the same with the other foot. She repeated this several times.

"I don't understand." he said honestly.

Without looking up from watching her own feet step in place she replied, "What do you think will happen to them when they return without you? Can't you guess at how he's likely to reward failure?"

"Why does it matter what happens to them? They work for him!"

She stopped stepping and looked up at him, stunned for a moment by his sentiment. "Yours is not to judge, dear." Then she smiled, and laying a hand upon his shoulder said rather sweetly, "It doesn't suit you."

Finding her touch to be quite calming, he recognized the folly of his frustration, "Even so, even if Voldemort having my wand saves any life at all, wont he just use it to take countless others?"

She placed her other hand on his other shoulder and fixed her eyes on his saying, "Harry, your wand will not aid him. I only hope he doesn't realize that right away himself, that his thirst for power deceives him …just long enough." Her eyes began to fill with sorrow as she spoke and her gaze drifted to the bit of sky that could be seen above the water, between the trees. Harry suddenly found himself feeling very sad as well until she dropped her hands to her sides and looked back at him, smiling again. "Now, shouldn't you be studying or something? Let's get you back, eh?"

Relieved to discover her intention to help him return to Hogwarts, he simply nodded and braced himself for the journey; having been unexpectedly transported, teleported, and transmogrified over the years, he was beginning to learn to expect the unexpected. But it didn't come. She merely walked by him, away from the river and into the woods, back in the direction he had come from.

"We're walking then?"

"Is that a problem?" she asked without turning around or breaking her stride.

"No. No, not at all. A bit refreshing, actually." and he really meant it as he scrambled in the dark to make up the distance of a few steps.

They walked in silence for some time through the wilderness. Selena led, he thought, with no earnestness at all; although he really had no idea how long they'd been walking or what distance they had traveled. She moved easily through the trees, hopping along stumps and roots like one would use stones to cross a creek. Harry, in contrast, was constantly stumbling in the dark, swatting at biting bugs and pulling sticks and thorns from his hair and clothes - all the while brushing cobwebs away whenever he had a hand free from minding the bugs and sticks. He wanted to ask her about the men who had seized him, about the mist she came from, about Voldemort. But she had already been kind and candid with him and he didn't want to be impolite so instead he just did his best to keep up.

After what must have been hours, they emerged from the forest at the base of high rolling hills. The moonlight smoothly rounding the top of each one until a structure set upon a line of hilltops abruptly broke the light apart into several different angles. A railroad track! Harry sprang into a run straight up the first hill, putting Selena behind him. As he neared the top he could see the spires of Hogwarts castle only a few miles out.

"Oh, you want to race!" Selena called up to him enthusiastically. Without hesitation she bolted up the hill and rushed past him, giggling. He stood watching her for a moment, still a bit perplexed by his new acquaintance but no longer apprehensive. Whoever she was, she'd led him back. Safely. Considering how nimbly she navigated the forest, she certainly wasn't a very fast runner, a bit clumsy even. Feeling recharged, a wide grin spread across his face and he ran after her, passing her quickly and egging her on to catch him. They continued on this way, taking turns at the lead, laughing, taunting, running among the grassy hills in the moonlight.


	2. Chapter 2 - The Wand

**THE WAND**

"Dementors!? Riding nightmares!? Ridiculous!" Alastor Moody shouted, "'twas the Night Guard, I'm sure of it. Only a fool would confuse the two!"

Severus Snape, accustomed to Moody's insults, maintained his composure with no intention of arguing the point.

"But that doesn't make any sense," offered Minerva McGonagall, "what would the Night Guard want with Harry?"

"Who are they? I've never heard of them," Hermione asked.

"Perhaps the children should return to their dormitories." Severus Snape remarked in his usual dispassionate tone.

Hermione shot a glare at him that would have disparaged any other but Snape simply cocked his head and met her gaze until she cast her eyes away.

"And what should they do there, Severus? Fret in the dark, alone?" Albus Dumbledore spoke frankly but with ever-present kindness, "No. They are welcome to what little comfort we can offer." He mustered up a smile while moving to put one hand on Hermione's shoulder, the other on Ron's who was sitting just next to where she stood.

The four adults had gathered in the antechamber of the Great Hall to discuss Harry's abduction and what might be done about it. Ron and Hermione had wandered in, unable to sleep, looking for answers. Moody leaned over the fireplace with one arm resting on the mantle, his magical eye frantically darting about the flames like he was skimming the pages of a book for a passage he had lost. Snape and McGonagall stood rigidly at opposite sides of the archway; she to the left, he to the right, with hands clasped before them they could just as well have been a pair of statues. Dumbledore and Harry's two best friends were gathered alongside an oak table set against the left wall. Hermione, deep in thought, occasionally nibbled at a thumbnail and Ron, hunched in an oversized chair facing away from the table picked at a handful of candy he'd absentmindedly scooped out of the large glass bowl from the table's center. The candlelight was respectfully dim so as not to disturb the portrait figures but it was to no avail as they restlessly paced about themselves, uncertain of what this tragic occurrence could mean to them all.

"You didn't answer my question," said Hermione turning to face Dumbledore. "Who are the Night Guard?"

He looked to his colleagues as if to plea for an interjection but none was offered. "It is believed by some that they hail from the old world, Ms. Granger, along with many others who claim to have inhabited the earth long before the wizarding world had even come about. You haven't heard of them because most books containing any information about them have either been destroyed or locked away. Some witches and wizards would argue that they don't even exist and most others dispute their origins."

"So, they're immortals?" she concluded.

Minerva, clearly unnerved by the topic of conversation sharply stated, "Now, that isn't proven."

Flustered by any number of thoughts spinning about in his chaotic mind, Moody joined in, "Bah! The Ministry takes the position that there are no truly immortal beings, and those who claim to be are regarded as the worst of deceivers. But no matter what the idiots at Whitehall believe, Feyfolk DO exist although they have, for the most part, maintained a long standing tradition of non-interference with what they consider to be mortal affairs."

"Then why did they take Harry?" asked Hermione sincerely, not questioning the grumbling professor's position on what was clearly a rather controversial topic.

They all looked helplessly at one another, this was the very question they'd been asking themselves all along. Ron, not typically the one to connect the dots, scowled as he glumly let out, "They're taking Harry to _him_ aren't they?"

"That just doesn't make any sense." McGonagall reiterated.

"Aye," agreed Moody. "It's not their nature to take allegiance. But the boy is right, it's the only explanation." He slammed his fist hard onto the stone wall, "Argh! Must be foul magics at work indeed to twist _their_ will to do _his_ bidding"

It was then that Dumbledore realized Snape had left the room. It wasn't like him to abandon protocol and take his leave without requesting it of the Headmaster. But then he felt it too. He looked to see if the others noticed but they were too engrossed in conversation.

Hermione's brow furrowed, something wasn't sitting right with her. "Professor Moody," she began, "if there are no books or lessons about, what did you say they were called? Feyfolk? Then how do you know so much about them?"

There wasn't much that could render renowned auror Alastor Moody speechless but look on his face said it all, he did NOT want to answer that question. But the awkward silence that would have followed was spared by the sound of a woman's voice from the archway:

"Lose something?"

"Harry!" Hermione shouted, racing right past Selena to throw her arms about Harry's neck pulling him in so tight to her that he should never go missing again. He freed a hand to lay her hair out of the way enough to see Ron rise from his chair greeting him with a smile and nod. Harry smiled back at him while returning Hermione's embrace.

"Selena?" said McGonagall looking to Dumbledore with concern in her eyes and a slight tremble in her voice.

Dumbledore resumed a manner of benevolent authority to address her, "Selena! A delight to see you again and how fortunate that you were nearby! I need not tell you how grateful we are to have Harry returned to us, unharmed no less. How can we ever thank you enough?"

Their pleasantries were interrupted by Hermione's screeching, "Harry! What's happened to your face!?"

He really looked awful. The hours-long trek through the woods had scratched him up pretty good. Patches of dried blood caked in dirt were exaggerated by the swelling of bug bites all over his face, neck, and hands. Bits of leaves and dried grass were caught up in his tangled hair, his clothes were grass-stained and torn.

"Gracious, child!" cried Professor McGonagall as she moved to him, cradling his head in her hands, turning it about to assess the damage.

"I'm alright, really." said Harry, pulling away from her, "Just some bites and scratches, we walked in the forest a while to get back."

McGonagall looked to Selena, who showed no signs of dishevelment,"Why on earth did you walk?"

"Well, just got into the body you know, needed to..." she gasped, touching her hand to her chest, "Are those Every Flavour Beans?!" She ran excitedly to the oak table disregarding everyone else in the room and began plucking them from the large bowl, rapidly popping one at a time into her mouth. She mumbled something about "chocolate" and "liver" but between her rushed diction and mouthful of candy it was impossible to make out. Ron, very amused, sniggered at her.

McGonagall gave Dumbledore a stern look gesturing towards Selena. Moody remained uncharacteristically still and silent.

The Headmaster pretended to clear his throat and started again, "You are of course welcome to take them with you, dear. If I recall, you were always especially fond of sugar mice, we can package some of those for you as well."

Selena looked up at him from the bowl of candy, a bit of sugary drool escaping from her lips, "Nonsense darling, don't be silly. Obviously Tom's messing about with fey magic. Better if I stay here. You will make arrangements, wont you?"

He exchanged a pitiful look with Professor McGonagall, he'd tried. He then turned to Professor Moody, "Alastor, wont you please have Filch manage a room for our guest, the North Tower ought to do."

Moody nodded and started for the doorway catching Selena's eye for the first time since she'd arrived. He exited without a word and she let him.

McGonagall opened her arms to the backs of the students beginning to usher them out, "Alright now, off to bed! Long day tomorrow."

As they neared the exit to the Great Hall, Harry stopped and turned to speak to her, "Professor McGonagall, my wand. I'm afraid I don't have it anymore."

McGonagall stopped short, "Oh?"

"Oh yes," said Selena, finishing one last candy before brushing her hands off on her unblemished white clothing. "That's my doing, sorry. I think I can right that though, let's see." She moved to the center of the room waving Dumbledore away from her and toward the others, "Back off a bit, love."

The others watched as she closed her eyes and stood perfectly still, her arms at her sides, her palms facing outward. She began to breathe in deeply but just around the moment one would expect an inhalation to be complete, she continued to breathe in, and continued still. After the first ten seconds or so, Hermione jerked forward and clasped a hand to the back of her neck. She looked at Ron and Harry who's faces showed they felt it too, a tingling sensation. Ron, content that everyone was experiencing the same thing, turned his eyes back to Selena. Hermione, looked around the room for other signs of disturbance and noticed the thin layer of soot at the base of the fire slowly moving along the floor toward the strange woman in the center of the room. Harry looked about as well and discovered an expression on his mentor's face that he'd never seen before, one of absolute wonder. Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, chief wizard of the Wizengamot, and largely considered to be the most powerful wizard of his age, looked like a muggle child seeing a magic trick for the first time. Not entirely entranced however, he placed a reassuring hand on Harry's shoulder. Minerva just looked worried.

After about thirty seconds or so, Selena stopped breathing in and began to exhale. As she did, a thin white vapor poured from her pursed lips. Harry thought it identical to the mist he had watched her form from. It congealed about a foot from her face into what was easily discernible as the base of a wand. As it built itself upward, fine details appeared: thin hooved legs set against elongated tree trunks, a tuft of fur, a proudly raised muzzle, topped off by majestic antlers intertwined with the branches of the surrounding trees. Selena opened her eyes, widening them with satisfaction at the sight of her creation and resumed breathing normally.

Hermione was the first to speak, "That's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

Dumbledore patted Harry where his hand lay on his shoulder, "Go on, it's alright."

Harry walked forward and drew it from mid-air. He turned it about in his hand, it was smooth like ivory but light as paper.

"That's your Patronus, isn't it, the stag?" queried Selena.

He just nodded. He actually whispered, "Yes," but he said it so quietly that no one heard.

"Well go on darling, give it a flick. Mind you though, likely to give you a bit more than the last."

He thought for a moment and looked around the room deciding on the fireplace as his target. He raised the wand and pointed it straight at the fire as he voiced the incantation "Aguamenti!" A flood of water jettisoned from the tip of his wand throwing him back onto the ground. It blasted against the stone wall of the fireplace curling into a wave that shot back out, dousing everyone in the room.

Selena giggled, "Well, I dare say it works!"

Ron helped Harry to his feet, both of them looking first at the wand then at each other. Ron managed a "Whoa." and Harry a "Yeah."

"I think that's enough for an evening. Come along, now." Professor McGonagall said and led the dripping wet Gryffindors back to their Hall.

Selena stretched her hands high into he air, yawning, "S'pose I'll turn in as well," she said to Dumbledore.

"Yes, it's been quite a day for us all. Filch will meet you at the entrance to the North tower to show you to your quarters."

"Mmm, very good." She started toward the archway stopping suddenly and sniffing at the air. Dumbledore grimaced. She ran her fingers lightly along the stones to the right of the exit and crouched down to touch the floor beneath them. The amber-colored rings in her eyes filled with violet as she stood and turned to him, beaming, "Severus is here!"


	3. Chapter 3 - Apples and Jam

**APPLES AND JAM**

The next morning at breakfast, word had already gotten out about Harry's safe return as well as the unusual gift he'd received. Students from every house conjectured over their juice and bacon and sausage and eggs and toast and tomatoes and beans. Harry was accustomed by now to being stared at and whispered about and it was a good thing too because stare and whisper they did. Even some of the teachers seated at the High Table could be seen continuously glancing over at the Gryffindors hoping to catch a peek – no one had ever seen a white wand before, much less one with such graceful images etched into it. His housemates were more respectful, they rattled on more about the remodeled Quidditch pitch and Hagrid's newest acquisition and who had the best chances of courting Madam Rosmerta this year.

Harry sat quietly amidst all the noise and commotion, turning the wand over and over in his hand. He wasn't particularly fascinated with it, not like the others were. In fact, seeing it really only made him think of his father. On most occasions, when he was reminded of him he felt joy, happiness, love; but staring into the pupil-less eyes of the stag depicted in the wand just made him think about how he had lost him, how he was gone forever. His trance was broken by the sound of Hermione's voice:

"Harry. Harry! I said, aren't you going to eat something?" she asked over an opened book. "I hear Arithmancy is absolutely grueling, you'll want to fuel up." She closed the book laying in front of her and began to rise from the table, "I'm going to the Library to try and get an edge on it, can barely hear oneself think in here this morning. How does everyone know about that thing already anyway?" she said gesturing at Harry's new wand. Both Harry and Hermione looked at Ron.

"Don't look at me," he said defensively, "I only told George!" The three of them looked to George.

"I only mentioned it to Fred this morning," shrugged George.

Fred broke from the telling of his latest prank to answer jovially to the four sets of accusing eyes, "Oh yeah, I told Pete, Katie, David, Amber, Sir Nicholas, Helga, Raashid, Professor Sprout, Mandy, Sarah, um, and a couple of Slytherin girls."

Hermione rolled her eyes at him and left the table to go study.

Now that the subject had been breached, most all of the other Gryffindor students fell silent and looked at Harry. He looked back at them, scanning their expectant faces, everyone was hoping for a chance to hold it. His eyes met Ginny's, she lowered her chin slightly and smiled at him as if to say, "Don't mind them." He held the wand out in his open hand to offer it to her but she just shook her head politely. After her experience with Tom Riddle's diary, she had made a point to avoid handling magical objects whenever possible.

"What's in it anyway? Does it have a core?" asked Neville, genuinely curious.

"I don't know." Harry answered.

"How could a wand work with no core?" Neville continued.

"I don't know." answered Harry again, still holding it just above the table in his open palm.

"Well, I'll have a go at it!" Seamus declared, grabbing it from Harry, who didn't resist. With the wand in one hand he inventoried the table contents just before him and with his other hand grabbed a handful of mushrooms and slapped them onto his plate. He didn't notice it but all eyes were on him, everyone from all four of the house tables and the High Table as well. The Great Hall was all but silent. Professor McGonagall rose from her seat as if to interrupt him but she didn't. Seamus waved the wand over his plate of bacon and spoke, "Engorgio!" Nothing happened. "Mus' be a dud," he surmised, casually handing the wand back to Harry.

This act inadvertently released all the tension in the room and everyone resumed minding their own affairs, suddenly disinterested in the artifact. Harry was confident that nothing was wrong with it and felt no need to prove otherwise to himself or to anyone else. He pocketed the wand and reached for a slice of toast.

Ron, brushing pastry crumbs from his hands and face noticed McGonagall returning to a seated position, "Where's Professor Dumbledore? Not like him to miss breakfast on the first day of school, usually has more announcements."

"Snape's missing too," noted Harry, looking up at the Headmaster's empty golden chair.

They were both just behind the wall in the antechamber, arguing.

"I understand your reservations Severus and for the most part I share them. But Selena is right. If Voldemort has discovered a way to use old magic to come after Harry, we may need her help to protect him. At least for now."

"Perhaps. But might I point out that we do not even know if that is indeed the case."

"True, true. Regarding that, I have sent out a few scouts to gather what information they can. But, until we hear from them, she's staying at the castle."

They were both standing near the fireplace which was still afflicted by Harry's Aguamenti spell cast the night before although the rest of the room had returned to order. They looked at Selena, sitting cross-legged on the oak table, her long curly hair pouring over the edges. McGonagall had insisted she wear more appropriate clothing while on school grounds and procured a set of satin robes for her from Madam Malkin's. They were peach in color, trimmed in a very dark green ivy pattern and they very much suited her dainty frame. She would have looked quite lovely if not gorging herself on the apples the large glass Bowl of Replenishment now offered. Dumbledore winced as she devoured them in just a few bites each, one after another, core and all; her chin was covered with juice and bits of skin and seeds.

"Very well," Snape said, frowning. "If she is to stay then I must insist on some ground rules." At this, Selena stopped eating, wiped her chin clean, more or less, on one of her hanging sleeves and swung her legs over the edge of the table to face the two professors. He continued with some severity, "She will at all times maintain the greatest distance possible from me as space allows in any given room. She will not address me under any circumstances that are not crucial or perilous in nature. She will not, for any reason, lay her hands on my person, my stores, or any of my personal belongings for the remainder of her stay."

Selena blinked a few times before letting out a hearty bellow of laughter. It resonated into the Great Hall besetting all who heard it with a flash of giddiness. She teared up a little before regaining her composure. Snape glared at her as she dried her eyes before offering her reply, "Oh, you're serious." She cleared her throat and took on a more decisive tone. "Well then, I reject every one of those ridiculous terms."

"Selena, please..." started Dumbledore.

"Now now," she stopped him raising a finger, "this is between me and Severus." She dropped her bare feet onto the floor and walked to where they stood clasping her hands behind her back. "You ask the impossible of course so I propose the following instead," As she continued speaking, she slowly walked a figure eight around the two of them. "I will always occupy the space nearest to you. Doesn't make any sense not to, really. Not only will I address you, darling - frequently, but I've half a mind to go so far as to serenade you now and again. If the mood strikes." She stopped pacing for a moment between Snape and the fireplace and smiled wide to herself at the very thought. The violet rings in her eyes pulsed. The two men shifted uncomfortably and she continued, "But, I will make every effort not to paw at you and I do promise not to set foot in your classroom, your office, or your quarters. Without your expressed consent of course." She made her way around and stood before him to catch his reaction to her proposal.

Snape, refusing to indulge her, furled his lips and conceded with silence. His acceptance was partly due to her counter offer being surprisingly reasonable and partly knowing the futility of contending with such a creature. He turned to Dumbledore, "If anyone should require my services, Professor, I shall be in my office."

But as he started toward the door Dumbledore reached for him apologetically, "Actually, Severus, your attendance is required at breakfast this morning as there are additional announcements."

Snape tugged at his sleeves and stamped out the door, allowing his headlong stride to convey his contained fury.

"I do wish you wouldn't antagonize him." Dumbledore said, raising his own finger this time to belay her protest, "He's suffered enough."

Selena bowed her head in submission and allowed him to lead them beyond the archway to breakfast.

There was some minor chatter amongst the house tables as Dumbledore appeared so unusually tardy. The chatter rose to a full clamor as Selena approached Professor Flitwick, who was seated next to Snape. She jerked her head sideways signaling him out of his chair. He looked on her with a mixture of surprise and uneasiness. "This will be my seat now." she said, very friendly. Flitwick nodded in compliance and rose quickly, bumbling his way to an empty seat near Professor Hooch.

The Headmaster stepped up to the podium and the murmuring came to a close. "I have two additional announcements this morning. After some deliberation it has been decided that following the success of the Yule Ball, Hogwarts will host a Valentine's Formal this year." Sounds of celebration began to rise from the tables but were cut short by the raising of Dumbledore's hand. "We are also fortunate to have a special guest staying with us," he waved a hand to where Selena had already begun filling her plate, she rose halfway from her seat and nodded to acknowledge her introduction. "A personal friend of mine, Selena, has agreed to offer extracurricular lessons in the use of natural magic, a very rare opportunity as the subject is not taught at any of the known schools of witchcraft and wizardry. These lessons will only be available to third years and above and only with signed consent forms. No credit will be awarded to those who participate, however I strongly recommend anyone who is truly serious about learning magic attend if possible. Those interested should inform their House Head who will send an owl to your parents," he concluded and took his place at the center of the table. The room rumbled with conversation, mostly about who to ask and what to wear to the dance.

Selena, with a biscuit in one hand and several strips of bacon in the other, watched the students as they finished their meals and collected their books, preparing to leave for their first day of class. She turned to Snape hoping to share a nostalgic sentiment but he just glowered at her before directing his gaze into nothingness. "Oh, stop scowling at me, Severus, and pass the jam."


End file.
